A wretched man am I! What will rescue me out of this body of death? Grace! I thank God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Consequently, then, I myself, with the mind, indeed, am slaving for God's law, yet with the flesh for sin's law.
Romans 7: 24-25, Concordant New Testament
There is a common phrase thrown out whenever someone acts in the wrong way. The devil made me do it! There may be a sliver of truth to that, since it is the deceiver who introduced us to sin in the first place {Genesis 3:4-6}. Yet we can't throw all of the blame for our bad behaviors on the most obvious scapegoat, for we ourselves have a role to play in that movie. Not only do we at times have the desire to behave wrongly, there is a part of us which is more than willing to go along with the plan. That part of us is none other than our flesh. To put it in perspective, it is Christ who indwells in us {Galatians 2:20}. Yet, it is our flesh that is the container for His being in us. Granted, Jesus did away with that old nature that He would make His home in us {Romans 6:6}. It is the flesh that remains. It is our flesh that is often at war with the desires of the Lord. It is our flesh which God referred to as His enemy {Romans 8:7}. This should not come as a surprise to most believers, as scripture is filled with passages that depict the flesh as being contrary to the desires of the Lord. Now, the flesh is not entirely wicked, it is simply highly influenced by our outside world around us. The apostle Paul realized that his mind was obedient to the Lord but his flesh was indeed focused on sin {Romans 7:24-25}. Should we anguish as Paul did upon our realization that our flesh is contrary to God? What wretched man am I! No, for even Paul realized that although his flesh may be highly influenced, it is the grace of the Lord which saves us from ourselves {Romans 7:24}.
For the flesh is lusting against the spirit, yet the spirit is against the flesh. Now these are opposing one another, lest you should be doing whatever you want.
Galatians 5: 17, Concordant New Testament
It is important to remember that despite the fact that our members are waging war against the desires of the Lord, all is not lost. I am not that wretched man. For through the love and grace of Christ Jesus I have been redeemed. Despite the war raging within me, I still reserve the right to choose bad behavior or choosing Christ. My focus can be on Jesus, or on the world around me. Because of the sacrifice of Christ at the cross, I am a new creation in spirit {2 Corinthians 5:17}. This vessel that is so influenced by the world around me was also lovingly created by the Lord {Genesis 1:27}. For many believers, the mind is focused on the Lord. Yet the fleshly body is all too often focused on what not to do. We can see this evidenced in the number of Godly men who have fallen victim to one perilous behavior or another. I used to think of pastors as men of the Lord with iron will. I would try to model myself after their passion for the Lord. That was then, this is now. In recent years, the mainstream church has been rocked with allegations and charges of these men of God behaving badly. More evidence of the war waging within. Knowing the good which pleases God, yet instead choosing to follow the deceptions of the flesh. I've been down that road as well. Guilt, condemnation and shame are the usual outcomes. As believers, we might feel that all is lost when we make the choice to follow where the flesh leads. We may see ourselves as that wretched man Paul agonized over. We do well to remember that Christ Jesus has provided for our redemption. We are no longer defined by our flesh, but by Christ in us.
~Scott~
No comments:
Post a Comment